Just three weeks ago, Hezly Rivera walked away from the U.S. Classic in 12th place, defeated but not given up. On Day 1, she hit all four routines with calm precision and a quiet confidence that made the arena take notice. Her balance beam set, worth 14.350 after an inquiry, boosted her difficulty to 6.4, which was the best of the night. She backed it up with a 14.000 on floor, tying for second, then delivered clean, composed work on vault (13.800, despite a neutral deduction) and bars (13.450).

By the end of the night, her 55.600 total had edged her into first place, just ahead of Joscelyn Roberson and Leanne Wong.

She kept her composure through every landing, every leap, and every swing, carrying the same calm determination into her final four events. When the chalk dust settled, Rivera had secured the 2025 Xfinity U.S. all-around crown with a two-day total of 112.000, just 0.8 points ahead of Leanne Wong. At just 17 years old, Hezly Rivera had claimed her first National Championship. Rest of the story? In her very own words…

“I was aware it was pretty close, like right before I went on the floor, probably a minute or two. So it’s a little bit nerve-wrecking, but I just tried to trust the process and trust God and just let my body do what it knows how to do.” Hezly Rivera shared with NBC when asked about her awareness of how close it was going into that final rotation between her and Leanne.

Going into the final rotation (floor exercise) on Day 2, the battle for the all-around title was extremely tight between Hezly Rivera and Leanne Wong. Leanne Wong held a lead, sitting at 56.100, while Hezly needed to score at least 13.900 on floor to overtake her. 

Rivera delivered under pressure. She scored 14.200 on floor, which vaulted her into the lead and ultimately secured the championship with a final total of 112.000, edging out Wong’s 111.200. So, what does the national title mean to her?

The Olympic gold medalist shared, “It means the world to me to take this national championship title home because I’ve worked so hard for this. It was not easy coming back after the Olympics. I took some time off, so much work in the gym, hard work, blood, sweat, and tears. So I’m just so grateful that I’m here today.” As much fun as Paris was, coming back to gymnastics was equally tough for her.

At the Paris Olympics, Rivera participated in the uneven bars and balance beam during qualifications. And winning the team gold there made her the youngest American to claim an Olympic title since swimmer Katie Ledecky and gymnast Kyla Ross in London 2012. But once back home, she took a break from the sport. What did she do during that break? “I laid down, or I sat on the couch. That’s literally all I did.”

Rivera returned to training at the World Olympic Gymnastics Academy in Texas, overcame three weeks of initial soreness, and was back competing in February. All in all, everything worked out for her, winning the National title eventually. The path was not so easy, though.

Hezly Rivera fell only to rise higher

At the 2025 U.S. Classics, it was tough to watch Hezly Rivera compete. She had a rough start on the uneven bars. Her Tkachev releases were unusually low, barely making it over the bar, and her dismount was mistimed and off balance. She ended up falling face-first into the mat, earning an 11.950. Unfortunately, the challenges didn’t stop there.

On the balance beam, she took another fall and finished with a 12.300, turning an already difficult day into one she’ll likely want to put behind her.

“Well, training before classics was going well. So, having a rough classics, I’m kind of glad that I just got it out of the way and getting back into competition and competing under a crowd,” Rivera confessed in the press conference on August 7th, 2025. But if you fall, you stand right back up. That’s gymnastics, and that’s what the Olympian is doing.

Rivera also mentioned that she had been focusing on rebuilding her confidence in the gym, admitting it felt shaken after the Classics. Over the past few weeks, though, she felt it returning and was once again finding joy in doing gymnastics. She even shared an exciting update for Xfinity Showdown. “Feeling really great going into this week. Training has been going great, and I’ve just been trying to trust myself. It’s been going really well.”

Well, the practice did show up today when she claimed the national title. Didn’t it?